


Devoid of Color

by SomethinGrimm



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Domestic Violence, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, Implied Sexual Content, Implied/Referenced Rape/Non-con, It Gets Worse Before It Gets Better, Mages, Main Character is being trafficked by her father, Main character is a mage, Prostitution, Protective Papyrus (Undertale), Protective Sans (Undertale), Slow Burn, Torture
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-02-01
Packaged: 2021-03-15 17:28:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28692483
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SomethinGrimm/pseuds/SomethinGrimm
Summary: Adelaide has been abused all her life, with most everyone turning a blind eye to it. When the skeleton brothers enter her life it doesn't take the oldest long at all to figure out what's going on with the young woman. The two offer to protect her, doing their best to keep their new friend safe from the horrible monsters that have kept her captive for all these years. In the wake of all the chaos Adelaide begins to learn things about herself. Will she be able to handle it all?(This work is also posted to my Quotev, but I wanted to put it here too so I can have at least something on this profile that has been otherwise dead. None of the Non-Con will be written out at all, just referenced. However the torture will be written out so please be wary of the notes on the chapters.)
Relationships: Alphys/Undyne (Undertale), Papyrus (Undertale)/Original Character(s), Sans (Undertale)/Original Character(s), W. D. Gaster/Original Character(s)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 9





	1. Skeletons and Weirdos

**Author's Note:**

> This particular chapter doesn't have much going on in it beside set up and prostitution at the end.

Waking up was something I wasn't exactly fond of doing. I sigh inwardly as I rollover onto my belly, burying my face in the pillow. I didn't want to leave my room today but I knew that there would be consequences if I didn't. About a year ago today monsters that had been stuck under a mountain all these years broke to the surface. This didn’t make my life any easier, but it wasn’t their fault. The natural human response to things we don't quite understand is fear, and humans can do diabolical things when they're afraid. It didn't help that the government didn't much care for them. Even with the state mandated checks to appear as if they cared they did nothing to actually protect the more fragile monsters.

I haven't personally met any out of work but even I knew that they were mostly all good. Though some more dark and violent ones had come to light when the barrier broke. There was some speculation that they had been among us in the shadows this whole time, and when the others were added to society they decided to appear too. There were a handful of these same monsters that were clients of my father. I tried not to hate them, but it was hard not too after everything they do to me. 

I realize now that if I don't get out of bed soon I’m going to be late for my day job. If I lose it my fathers going to make me work with him escorting his customers in the light of day as well as the nights he already makes me endure. It makes me want to die but there's really no where to go. All of the cops in town are in the man's pocket, and it makes it nearly impossible for me to escape him. I tried running away once before with a man that wanted to help me. My father tracked me down within days and cut my ring finger clean off to persuade me in never trying it again. He had told the hospital staff that I had done it while cooking. Unfortunately they weren't able to reattach it. 

I force myself to get up out of bed, looking for an outfit for the day. My muscles were quite sore from the happenings of yesterday. An unmarked black tee and some distressed jeans is what I pick out as I head to the bathroom down the hall. Judging by the silence in the house my father and his harpy of a girlfriend were out, making me feel safer about taking a shower. The hot water does wonders to soothe my tense and aching muscles as I wash off yesterday. I hated the particularly brutal customers with a passion. I try not to think about it now as I get done quickly and dry off. It takes a minute for me to completely dry my soaked hair that was about mid back in length. It was brown like my mothers, which made my grey eyes stand out all the more. I’m glad they were the only thing I had inherited from my father. 

Looking in the mirror makes me cringe a little bit. Between the bruises and bitemarks on my body and the dark circles under my eyes I thought I looked half dead. It took quite a bit of makeup as well as skill to cover it all up but I had to keep up appearances. I add a little more to the look to wrap it all up and make me look more feminine. This never really felt right but it's what my so called parents expected of me. After staring at myself for a few more moments I leave to go head to work. The job was only part time, six hours three days a week. I found that it was a sort of safe haven for me to go to. Somewhere I could feel less threatened. The walk there is about twenty minutes.

Upon entering the building I found myself pleasantly surprised. There was a new guy working with us, a rather nervous cat-like monster. He was pretty nice if not a little awkward. He started when our boss started collabing with the monster-robot superstar Mettaton. We had a whole section on our menu dedicated to the starlet, in both monster food and human food variety. I thought the progressiveness of my boss was rather refreshing. She was a good woman really. She was much older than me, and she was wise, caring, and charismatic. She always knew there was something going on with me even though I haven't said a word of it to anyone outside of the problem. It was nearly supernatural how clairvoyant the woman seemed to be. Everyone who knew her called her Mama Stella, and she knew a lot of people. 

The work day ran by pretty fast with me being mostly in my head. Too soon I’m clocking out and hanging up my apron. After this I would need to report to Adam, the pimp that works directly under my father. I supposed he didn't like getting his hands dirty so he had to get someone else to do it for him. Adam was much nicer than my father but that didn't mean I liked him. He made me do things I didn't want to do, and when I refused he would tell my father without hesitation. Before I leave I decide to get a coffee for the road. I suppose I had been standing there for a few moments too long because the new guy, Tom I found out, seems pretty nervous at the growing line.

“Hey, uh… Are you going to order something? There's people waiting on you, man.” The nervous monster before me says in a wavering voice. He gave me one of his many rather dramatic facial expressions as he waited for my response. I felt rather sheepish then. It must be contagious or something. 

“Sorry about that Tom, I’ll be quick. I’ll just have one of those new Mettamochas. Should be interesting....” I tell him then after blinking a few times. Most of the new drinks added to the menu had a similar theme. I half wonder if our boss hadn't done it to spite the monsterphobes across the street. 

The monster nods and puts my order into the machine, before looking back up at me, “5.99, Buddy.” He tells me then. He had only been calling me by generic nicknames all day. It sort of made me wonder if he had forgotten my name. However I don't really care enough to ask him if he had. 

I give a slight nod and I hand my card over to him and wait for the receipt to come out. As I wait for my drink to be made I go and sit down, pulling out my phone. I had some time before Adam expected me to go and find him at our usual motel. I don’t find any messages but I scroll through social media for a moment. It wasn't until I felt eyes on me that I actually looked up from my device. There’s a few moments before I seed out exactly what had me feeling a bit odd. There were two skeletal monsters sitting at the table across from me, the smaller of the two had an intense gaze set on me. Or at least near me. I decided to just brush it off and look back down at my phone. Pretty soon I felt the air around me displace and shift and the skeleton was suddenly sitting in front of me. It made me jump a little bit. 

“Um. Hello.” After a brief moment of silence I decided to say something. He didn't seem like he was going to hurt me, even if there was a bit of a creepy air about him. I chalked it up to him looking like an almost human skeleton and left it at that.

“Heya. Names Sans. Sans the skeleton. My brother over there's Papyrus. This is quite a monster friendly place for being ran by a human, huh?” He says, voice deep and low. It sort of gives me chills at first. He damn near sounds accusatory but I don't let him get to me. I figure he probably just doesn't trust kindness from humans. I can't say I do either so there's no real blame I could put on him.

“Yeah, the owner is a good woman. She uh. Hired me despite no one really wanting to. I’m Adelaide, by the way.” I introduce myself to him.

“Oh. Good, good. Are you from around here Adelaide?” He asks me. Maybe he came in as I was clocking off, hadn't seen me behind the counter. 

“Yeah, born and raised. You live around here too? I haven't seen you around town.” I asked him idly, just making conversation. I found myself relaxing a bit around him. After the first initial distrust in him before he seemed pretty cool now. 

“Me and my brother just moved to town. Used to be in the city over, but we decided to come to a smaller town.” He tells me as he messes with the sugar packets on the table, fidgeting a little with them. I imagine they moved to escape the violence of the cities. This town was bad but over there was much worse. 

I don't have time to respond to that as the other skeleton approaches, his long legs taking him to our side in just a few steps. He seems much happier and friendlier than his brother here. “Hello Human! Tis I, The Great Papyrus! My Brother Seems To Like You, So I Wanted To Meet You As Well!” His voice was loud and clear, with much more energy than Sans. It was a few notches higher than his brothers, too. 

“It’s nice to meet you, Papyrus. I’m Adelaide.” I tell him with a slight smile. His sort of childlike demeanor made him rather endearing to me.

“It’s Very Nice To Meet A Nice Human! Perhaps We Could All Get Lunch Sometime?” The rather tall skeleton offers, which I find bold but I can tell the proposal is entirely innocent. Sans doesn't seem to like the idea but he also doesn't really seem to hate it. I offer Papyrus my best smile. 

“I'd love to sometime! I’m usually very busy, but I'm sure we could work out a time to meet up.” The way his face lit up then made my heart flutter a bit. He was indeed very adorable.

“Excellent! I Shall Exchange Numbers With You So That We May Stay In Contact!” Papyrus then exclaims. I’m sure that if it had been anyone else I would've told them to fuck off, but he just sounded so excited about it. So of course I let him exchange digits with me. After this we talk until Tom calls out my name to collect my drink. I wish I could have stayed behind to talk with them more, but I didn't want to get beaten up for blowing Adam off.

“I’m sorry I have to head out. Shoot me a text okay? I’ll let you know when I’m free next.” I tell Papyrus, and before I get up Sans slips me a napkin with a number on it. Offering Sans a polite smile before I make my way back to the counter. I had noticed that Sans isn't very talkative but he had still been paying attention to our conversation. He must be pretty protective over Papyrus, and I don't really blame him. I would be protective over the skeleton myself. He just seemed so gullible. 

Leaving the shop I take a real look at the napkin. ‘Call me if you get bonely.’ The pun makes me laugh despite myself, and I put the number into my phone before tossing the napkin. If my father found it I don't even want to know what he would have done to me. The man didn't really look through my phone however, surprisingly. The walk to the motel takes me maybe fifteen minutes and Adam’s waiting for me at the door. He didn't really look all that happy and I could take an educated guess as to what had pissed him off. It was me, if you hadn't caught on. I take a sip of my coffee as I wait for the inevitable lecture coming my way. 

“Where the hell have you been? Your customer has been in there for like thirty minutes! Hurry your ass up and get in there!” He lays into me with a displeased tone.

“I lost track of time, it won’t happen again. Please dont tell my dad I was late. You know what he will do to me.” Most of the time guilt tripping worked on the man unless I had royally pissed him off. However I can see his pissed off demeanor start to crack and he eventually sighs. 

“I’m not going to tell your fucking dad, but you better get in there and make the client forget that you were late. There's nothing stopping him from complaining to the boss.” He tells me in his usual grumpy tone, getting close enough to my face that we’re almost kissing. Him referring to me as a kid in this situation makes my skin crawl a little, and I turn my face away. He holds up some leather piece to me and sneers a bit, “He wants you to wear this. Get in there and suit up.”

I take the costume without another word and mentally prepare myself for what's about to come. It’s getting easier and easier to disconnect myself from these scenarios, and I’ve started doing this unconsciously. I take a deep breath before walking into the motel room. The man is sitting on the bed now with his eyes on his phone. It takes a few moments for him to look up at me but I could tell immediately he wasn't human. His eyes were a luminescent purple, and he had pale skin with long black horns that curved like that of a rams. There were various scars on his face . He must be a monster of the more violent category. 

“Sorry about the wait, Sugar. Hit some traffic on the way over. Let me get into this and I’ll be right out.” I tell him before going into the bathroom and closing the door. He has yet to say anything to me but I still felt nervous about this. 

I look at myself in the mirror for a moment while I get myself into the innocent type of character the client wanted. It took me just a bit longer than it normally would have but eventually I’m leaving the bathroom to meet up with the man. He still seems as impassive as he had been when I had first walked in and didn't really respond at all to the shy looking smile that I had given him. He slowly puts his phone away as he levels me with his cool gaze and just motions for me to come closer. I reluctantly respond, and curl further into my mind so that I’m not entirely present for this.


	2. Bars and Sleepovers

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a relatively light chapter aside from some tension between Adelaide and her father, nothing too bad just yet. Sans is a bit suspicious of Adelaide ad her secretive nature. Papyrus is a cinnamon roll who makes everyone feel better.

Coming home after that rather long night of bullshit was probably worse than being in that motel room with what was essentially perfect strangers. My father had been casually waiting for me in the living room. As I stare into the back of his head he doesn't acknowledge me as he looks over the newspaper he holds in his hands. Quietly I tried to walk past him to get up into my room, but I had to clip close to the couch he was sitting on and as I did so he caught my arm in his hand. 

“You should go and eat something, wouldn't want you gettin malnourished. Oh, and we’re going to be having a guest tonight.” He tells me in a sickly sweet tone that was so obviously fake. When he says this I know that it's either a new client or a new girl, and that he would want me out of sight for the night. “I’ll give you some money to get out of the house. And uh, stop by that new monster bar, Grillbys was it? I need you to deliver this to a guy there by the name of Erick.”

“How will I know what this Erick looks like?” I asked him, confused as I had never met anyone by that name. My father shows me a picture quickly, the guy looks sort of like a werewolf. I guess I won't miss him. 

After slipping the picture away my father hands me an envelop and some money. I mutter to him that I’ll be taking a quick shower before I head back into town. I did so quickly, washing the men off me and redoing my makeup quickly to hide the scars and bruises on my face. I put on a black and green themed make-up look with some Alice in Wonderland attire. It had always been my favorite, I wanted to run away to Wonderland when I was little. My hair is thrown up into a messy bun to keep it out of my face and I manage to fake a smile again when I see how good I look then. Enough makeup to make me look like an entirely different person made me feel comfortable in my own skin.

I make sure that I have my pocket knife, phone, and wallet on me before I head out of my home. My dad is no longer in the living room but I hear him yell at me to take the spare car as I open the door. I close it with a quiet exasperated sigh as I head for the attached garage. The spare car was a black Camaro, a real beauty but it was a pseudo-gift from my father. Occasionally when he was particularly brutal he would get me things. I knew it was his form of manipulation but I am embarrassed to say that it worked sometimes. I hook my phone up to the radio, playing a playlist that I like before getting on the road. 

Halsey's voice comes through the speakers and it makes a genuine smile come to my face. I loved singing but I hardly ever did it. Just like a lot of the other things that I loved. I start singing alone with the radio as I head over to the monster bar, “They send me away to find them a fortune, a chest filled with diamonds and gold. The house was awake, the shadows and monsters, the hallways they echoed and groaned. I sat alone in bed till the morning, I’m crying, ‘they're coming for me!’”

The way to Girllbys is still in my mind, I had seen it a few weeks before while I was on one of my walks. Which is part of the reason the car ride hadn't lasted very long at all. Even from out here I could tell the place had a warm atmosphere. I take in a deep breath before turning off my engine and heading inside. In moments I find the monster the envelope belongs to and approach him with my best people pleaser smile. He growls at me as I extend the package to him making me laugh nervously. As soon as he takes the envelope I turn to leave. A quick look around the bar has my eyes immediately drawn to the smaller skeleton before. A smile comes back to my face, a genuine one this time, and I decide to make my way over to him.

“Hey there, stranger, come here often?” I ask him as I take a seat next to him. He looks over at me really slow at first but when he seems to remember who I was his smile only widens. He seems to be in a good mood today. 

“Oh hey, it’s you. What are you doing here, kid?” He asks me with that deep voice of his. It’s still as pleasant as the first time I had heard it. Though the nickname had me holding back a cringe. I hated it when people called me that. Still, I offer a small chuckle and look away from him for a moment.

“I was just dropping something off for my dad. It’s kind of been a long day and he told me to get out of the house. What’s good here, do you know? I’m starving.” I realize I was in fact hungry as hell but I mostly wanted to change the subject. 

“I got ya, kiddo. Hey Grillbz, a double order of burg please.” The grinning skeleton beside me says. Looking over at him I realize he looked almost sad for a moment before he caught my gaze. It was gone almost as soon as it had graced his face. When my eyes finally see the bartender up close I'm in awe for a moment. That was most certainly a man made of fire. I try not to stare too hard but I had to say he was quite beautiful looking to my pyromaniac self. He doesn't seem to mind. Or he just doesn't notice. 

“So uh. Where's your brother?” I ask Sans as an attempt at making conversation. The fire person, Grillby I guess, walks over in no time placing down two burgers in front of us. I can't help but watch him as he walks away. 

“He hates this place so he normally stays home and cooks.” He tells me then as he picks up the ketchup and just flat out drinks it. I blink a couple times as he does this but I suppose it wasn't the strangest thing that I had ever seen. Soon I pick up my burger and take a bite. After the day I had it tasted pretty amazing. 

“About that lunch we were supposed to be getting. I’m off in two days. How about noon then?” I asked him then. I found his and his brothers company quite enjoyable. If I made friends with them I could keep them at an arm's length to save them from my father. I didn't have many friends as it stood and something compelled me to try and keep these two around.

“Yeah, that’ll work. Where do you wanna meet up, Kiddo?” He asks me then. I have to think about it for a moment. Somewhere out of my fathers roaming range, somewhere none of his goons will see me either. There's a cafe on the other end of town I liked taking Erin to on occasion which just might be the perfect place.

“Have you been to Ella’s corner before? They make the best pasta in town! And I heard they’ve added monster food onto their menu. We could go there, my treat.” I tell him with probably the most excited tone I’d had in a long time. Though it wasn't much of a difference from my usual tone anyways. 

“Sounds punderful. Pap’ll love it, spaghetti’s his favorite food.” He tells me then, the pun there making me scrunch my nose up at him. Really, it had been terrible.

“Great! Always good to make new friends. I could pick you two up if you’d like, I’ll need to know where you live. If that’s too personal I understand.” I tell him, not really expecting him to agree. He seemed wary of me before. 

“Well, sounds like a plan. I can show you once we’re done here, if it's no trouble.” He tells me then, surprising me a little. I must have gained his trust somehow. I eat a bit more after offering him a small smile. It doesn't take long for the both of us to finish eating, his burger quite literally disappearing. I don't think I’ve seen him take an actual bite of anything. 

“Whenever you're ready to head out, I’m done.” I tell my new friend beside me. The bartender comes over and takes our plates and I can't help but stare at him discreetly. He was very interesting to look at.

“Put it on my tab, Grilbz.” The skeleton beside me tells the flame being, to which there's a disgruntled noise but a nod nonetheless. Once Grillby walks away Sans turns to me and says, “Alright I’m ready now.

I nod to him with a slight smile as I get up and leave with him. He seems a bit surprised when he sees my car and I feel compelled to tell him, “It’s my fathers car. I’m borrowing it for the night.”

“How old are you, if you don't mind me asking?” He inquires then, cocking his head to the side as he looks over the car at me. 

“I’m nineteen, going to be twenty next month.” Another nod in response from him, and we both hop in the car. I buckle up and turn on my radio as he gets situated. I turn to him and say, “Sorry if you don’t like my music. It helps me focus.”

Pulling away from the bar I listen to the skeletons directions. I hum along to the radio rather than sing, a bit embarrassed of my voice. Singing in front of others had always made me a little nervous. The drive is around the same time it takes to get to Grillbys from my house, a pretty comfortable distance. Their house was rather well put together and cute. It was your average house but there was something about it that seemed a bit like a tree-house. Pulling up I tap at my steering wheel for a moment in the silence that fell between us. 

“Well, here you are! Bye! I guess I’ll see you and Papyrus tomorrow?” I say feeling a bit awkward about parting. Something in me really didn't want to. I was never good at goodbyes. A lot of the time I’d never see the person again. 

“Want to come in and say hi to Paps? He hasn't stopped talking about you since you left yesterday.” He asks of me, looking over for my reaction. 

“You sure? I’ve taken up so much of your time already!” I say with a small lopsided smile. His face was a light blue, was he blushing? Was that even possible for a skeleton?

“It’s really no trouble, Kiddo. I wouldn't mind talking with you a little longer, you're good company.” He tells me in what I’m sure is honesty. The blushing to his face seems to intensify a bit more when he says it. My phone buzzes in my pocket and I break the eye contact we had going to check who it was. I notice it's my father calling and I hold up a finger to tell Sans to stay quiet with a muttered apology.

“Uh, hey dad I was just on my way home.” I talk into the phone after answering it, giving no indication that I was with someone. 

“Don’t bother, find a place to stay for the night I’m going to be busy. Don't even think about skipping town, you hear me? I still got eyes out.” He tells me then, not sounding exactly happy. Something must have gone wrong with whatever it was he was doing. 

“Okay, I’m sorry. I won't. I’m going to let you get back to business. See you tomorrow.” I tell him in an even tone. He huffs on the other line and hangs up without another word. I sigh softly and put my phone away. Sans seems to be looking at me expectantly. 

“So, uh. I guess I will be coming in. I really hate to ask, but do you think I could stay here for the night? I live with my dad, and he has something going on tonight. He doesn't want me home while he's doing it. Just… Home renovation things.” It’s embarrassing for me to ask, and have to lie about my situation. But telling him the truth could put him and his brother in immediate danger.  
“Yeah, it’ll be no problem. We should probably go inside and run it past Paps first.” He tells me then. I just nod and follow him up into the house. It’s practically spotless inside, and I can hear someone bustling around in the kitchen. Sans leads me straight to it and I find Papyrus cooking something. He looks over, ready to say something, but when he sees me next to his brother he seems almost awestruck.

“H-human, It Is So Nice To See You! I, The Great Papyrus Was Just Making Some Spaghetti! Should I Dish You Some As Well?” The tall skeleton asks me. 

“Hello, Papyrus. It's nice to see you as well. As good as spaghetti sounds I actually just ate. Maybe next time?” I tell him with a smile, a soft giggle bubbling up from my chest. He was absolutely adorable. 

“Pap, Addy’s going to stay the night with us.” Sans tells him after waiting for our greetings to be out of the way. Sans is standing next to me, and I can't help to feel small. Sans is probably about an inch taller than I was which was nothing compared to Papyrus.

“I really hope you don't mind. I’ve got nowhere else to go for the night.” I tell him as I shift the weight between my feet. I always happen to fidget when I’m nervous. 

“I Do Not Mind At All, Human! You Are Welcome Here Anytime!” He tells me with an absolutely stellar smile. His voice was the happy and jovial tone I’ve come to expect from him. His excitement was rather refreshing. 

“Thank you, Papyrus. You're both really too kind.” At my thanks he lets out a rather hearty laugh that's infectious. There's just a moment of comfortable silence between the three of us. 

“Well, Addy, you want to go watch some T.V. or something?” Sans asks me, breaking the silence. 

“Um, sure. Have fun cooking Papyrus!” I tell the taller brother, following Sans out of the kitchen and into a living room right off to the side. He flicks on some channel that I don't recognize, the show centered on Mettaton. He was doing some pretty outrageous stuff as he baked a cake. I didn't pay much attention to it but I didn't really mind.

“So, do you have any siblings?” Sans asks me after watching the robot for a while. It seemed like he was just trying to make conversation but my heart sinks. I didn't want to talk about my family.  
“Nope. I’m an only child. My mother got really sick after I was born. Died when I was three.” I tell him as honestly as I can, leaving out my fathers part in her sickness. 

“So it's just you and your dad? I’m sorry kid.” He says softly. I feel myself physically cringe and he seems to notice it. He asks with a worried tone, “You okay over there, kid?”

“I’m good. Just, hate being called kid. Your brother likes to cook? I like cooking too. It’s why I work at the coffee shop.” I tell him as I quickly change the subject. It felt for a moment that he was onto me or something. I’d have to stay off the subject of family tonight. It’s for his own good.


	3. Of Heavy Feelings and Singing Sessions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adelaide stays the night at the boy's house and Sans is onto her that something isn't quite right at home. Addy sings a little, and Sans disappears all the time.

They had made me a little bed on the couch, and even though I didn't sleep well that night their kindness had made me feel comfortable. I had woken them both up in a fit of screams that woke the both of them up which had been a bit embarrassing for me. Papyrus had long since fallen back to sleep, and I was huddled in a blanket sitting next to Sans in the dark. He had promised his brother that I was alright and to go back to bed. It made me feel a little better that he didn't have to see me like this. 

“It’s okay, you know. I have nightmares too.” He tells me quietly. I look over to where I hear his voice coming from and sigh softly. 

“I didn’t mean to scare you guys like that. You two made me forget I ever had them.” I respond with a slight frown. He makes a noise of confirmation, and I think he might even be falling back asleep. I stay quiet beside him just in case. I’ve already woken him up once, I would feel bad about keeping him up.

“You can tell me about it, kid. Not good for someone to keep it all bottled up. Believe me.” He says in a soft tone. My voice catches in my throat causing my reply to be a bit delayed. I could tell that he caught onto that.

“It’s nothing, really. I don't want to bother you with some old nightmares. The past just doesn't want to leave me alone.” I tell him as I do my best to sound reassuring.

“I know how that is, trust me. You wouldn’t be a bother to me.” He tells me sincerely. It doesn't sound like he's trying to push me into telling him, more of a sleepy and half-worried conversion. It’s comfortable. So I decide to tell him about the nightmare while still keeping some of it a secret. 

“In my nightmare that someone had stolen me and they were going to do something really bad. I actually have that one a lot.” I say softly as I look up at the ceiling through the darkness. There’s a hand on my shoulder that makes me jump, but once I remember that it’s Sans I calm down. 

“Listen kid, you’re safe here. If you need a place to go, you can come here. I like having you around, Pal.” The smaller skeleton tells me softly, and I can feel my face heat up a little bit. I’m not used to the kindness these guys are laying on me. 

“Thank you Sans. I like you too. The both of you.” I tell him then as I feel a smile curve to my lips. My nightmare was momentarily forgotten in the quiet that spreads across us. After a few moments I ask, “Hey, know what time it is?” 

“Beats me.” He says and I can almost hear his shrug. I pull my phone up to answer my own question. It's sometime around five in the morning and I already know that I’m not going back to sleep. 

“Whelp, it’s five in the morning and there's no way I'm going back to bed. That’s eggscellent.” I say out loud. Sans stays quiet for just a moment before he began snickering. 

“Oh my god, I think I'm in love. Did you just use an egg pun?” He asks me in between his fits of giggles. I nod but realize that he cant see me. 

“Yes. Yes I did. Was it… Humerus?” I asked him, laughing along with him as he just laughs harder. I find his laughter a little contagious. It was good to hear laughter that wasn't harsh and taunting. 

“Haha, yes. Very humerus.” He tells me then as his laughter begins to die down. I feel a hand on my shoulder in the next moment, only this time I don't flinch away from him. His voice sounds serious but not accusatory, “You’re really warming up to me fast, huh? Do you think you could stop lying to me then?” 

I freeze up for a second when his question sinks in, and I try to regain my cool. He can’t know what's been going on. What's still going on. So naturally I tell him with an even tone, “ I have no clue what you're talking about, Sans. What do I have to lie about honestly?

“You know us monsters can see things in others that humans can’t. I can see that you’re hurting. Won't you tell me what's going on so I can help you? We’re friends right?” He asks me in a soft tone, and I’m starting to feel bad. I can’t drag him and his brother any further into the mess that was my life. It was too dangerous for them. I feel his hand squeeze lightly, “Don’t worry kid, I can handle it, trust me.”

“Look. I really don't think you can. There is nothing wrong, I’m perfectly fine.” I tell him dismissively. Then as an afterthought I add on, “You shouldn't ask questions you don't want to know the answer to.”

“I want to know the answer, but I won’t push. Just promise you’ll tell me when you’re ready alright?” He asks me with concern in his voice. I was happy he was willing to drop the subject. 

“I don’t like making promises that I can’t keep. Sans, I care about you two even if I don’t know you that well. I can’t let you or your brother get hurt because of me.” I tell him. He goes quiet and his hand slips off my shoulder. 

“I get it, you're scared about what will happen to me and my brother if you spill the shit that’s going on with you. I’m telling you this now, nothing bad will happen to any of us. I want to protect you kid. I want to protect you more than anyone else I've ever met, and I don’t know why.” He tells me with a bit of frustration in his voice. I feel my face heat up as he continues, “Just…. If you need anything, you tell me okay?” 

“Yeah. Okay.” I tell him softly. There's a bit of an awkward silence that settles between us, the conversation seemed a little out of character for the skeleton next to me. After maybe an hour after the sun had come up and I looked over to Sans. His eye sockets are closed. 

“Do you think I could make breakfast. I mean, the suns up and I’m pretty hungry.” I say in a soft voice just in case he really fell back asleep. He looks over at me then with his smile slightly widened. 

“Sure, kiddo. Not sure what we have in the kitchen, but you can give it a go.” He tells me. I nod and get up from the pile of blankets. Stretching out my limbs makes for some pretty audible pops. My shirt’s big enough that I don't have to worry about exposing my scars to him. 

When I look back over at the skeleton he’s standing beside me. 

“I’m gonna…. Go find something to make.” I say and walk towards his kitchen. He’s following a few paces behind me. I open up the fridge to have a look. There’s definitely a lot of spaghetti in here….. Spaghetti…. Spaghetti… Ah, eggs! I pull them out and then look for some bread, already having something to make in mind. 

I put a pan on the stove to make sure that it heats up and put a tiny bit of butter in the pan. I get the bread ready, cutting out circular holes in the middle to crack an egg in. Cooking is sort of a therapeutic thing for me at this point, rhythmic and also being clinical. I can feel Sans come to watch me over my shoulder curiously.

“What are you making?” He asks with a tilted head. I laugh and look over at him. He’s closer to me than I had originally thought which causes what I hope is the last blush for today. 

“It’s called Eggy in a basket. My mother used to make it.” I tell him then, feeling a little reminiscent. 

“That’s pretty creative. How do you humans think of things like this?” He asks me, going back to sit down and watch me from the table. I just giggle a little and keep on cooking. 

I go and get a plate to set the food on, flipping the bread and egg in the pan. The sizzle that came from it I found somewhat satisfying. Once it was done I set it on the plate and made another one, repeating until there was enough for everyone. When I served Sans and myself I put some salt and pepper onto the egg and Sans drenches his in ketchup that he had materialized out of seemingly nowhere. 

I look down at my own plate as I slowly eat. It’s so quiet you could hear a pin drop, but it's not as awkward as it might have been. I’m zoning out when my phone vibrates, bringing me back to the present. Adam was telling me that I had a customer at 8 and said not to be late this time. It made my face scrunch up a bit in disgust but Sans didn't seem to notice the expression. I put my phone facedown on the table and just stare at my plate, appetite pretty much lost by now. I power through eating it anyways. Once we’re done eating I set to cleaning up the dishes I had used. 

“I’ve got to get to work here pretty soon, but feel free to stick around and wait for Paps to get up, okay? Oh, uh. Papyrus is going to have a friend over a bit later, just to warn ya. She can be a little…. In tents.” Sans tells me then with what I’d call a shit eating grin. 

“How many tents? I’m just kidding, but that’s alright. I’ll stick around till you get back.” I respond with a slight giggle. When it went quiet between us again I began humming a little to myself. The song itself was a little morbid and sad but I liked it. 

“What’cha hummin’ over there?” Sans asks slowly in that deep voice of his. Sometimes it incited chills up my spine. 

“It’s from Nicole Dollanganger, it’s called Ugly. I had a friend that loved it a lot.” I answer honestly. Said friend was also a backstabbing bastard but I’d leave that part out of the conversation. 

“Will you sing for me?” He then asks, sounding a bit idle. I stop what I’m doing for a moment and look over my shoulder at him. He’s got one eye open, face leaning on one of his hands and he almost looks sleeping. His glowing pupil trained on me lazily. 

“Well, I’m not really good at singing. I don’t really sing in front of people.” I tell him as I turn back to the dishes.

“Oh, c’mon. I wanna hear it.” Sans says then, and by now I can't tell if he’s poking fun at me or if he’s being sincere. I sigh and put the pan in the dish strainer, then sit across from Sans. 

“Okay, I’ll sing for you, but don't laugh okay? This ones called….. A million men, it’s from Melanie Martinez. It’s kind of fucked up, I’m warning you now.” I tell him, taking a deep breath and pulling out my phone for something to harmonize to. I find a wholly instrumental version of it and press play, readying myself as the intro comes through. 

“Miss Maggie was way too young to understand, why she got thrown into someone else's hands. Why she woke up to strange men. They tore her to pieces and she couldn’t comprehend, why she was locked up in a basement filled with men. Should’ve gone to school, instead she did them.” I sang softly, looking over at the wall to help keep my voice steady.

“Don’t touch me, I’m fragile! I’m bitter in my heart… Mama sold me, for candy, and I was ruined from the start.” I continue on through the song. It feels more like an actual statement and I hope he chalks it up to morbid fascination or something. 

“Why’d you have to sell me to those mean old men, they cut me up in places I don’t even understand! It’s normalcy to me but how will my friends understand, I’m five years old sleeping with a million men. All grown up and her body had decayed, all those promiscuous games she had to play!” I take a short glance towards Sans. He looks relaxed, but also somehow sad. I gain a bit of confidence in my voice. 

“She’s trying to look at things in a bright way, sees a light peeking through the end of the hallway. No, she’s trying ta, trying ta escape… I’m runnin’ full force dear, but it’s harder when you’re bones. I’m weak-kneed, but I’m flyin’ out of this hell hole.” I get up, pace in a bit of a circle. It was a bit of a habit when emotions came on heavily. 

“Why’d you have to sell me to those mean old me? They cut me up in places I don't even understand.. It’s normalcy to me, but how will my friends understand? I’m ten years old, runnin’ from a million men. A million men.” I’ve got my back to Sans now but I’m singing loud and clear. I feel some tears welling up in my eyes and it's a miracle my voice doesn’t break.

“Finally the light is comin’ close. No turning back, run full force. Angels swoop down and grab me. And now I’m safe away from the million me who raised me… Why’d you have to sell me to those mean old men? They cut me up in places I don’t even understand. It’s normalcy to me, how will my boyfriend understand? I’m seventeen… with a history… of a million men.” I finish the song and the audio fades out. I turn back to him, holding back the tears that threaten to spill. I feel a bit stupid almost crying over this. I can’t even tell him the real reason it gets to me so much. 

“Hey, you lied to me! That was great! Why are you crying…?” Sans asks me softly. After a moment he says, “It really wasn’t bad kid.”

“It’s not that!.... I’ve never sung in front of anyone before, I was always too scared to. But that was fun, actually.” I tell him softly, rubbing the tears from my eyes. “I probably wouldn't do it in front of anyone else though.”

“I’ll have to change your mind then. A voice like that should be shared….. Well, I’ve got to head to work. I’ll see you later. Have fun, don't let Undyne overwhelm you.” He tells me after checking an imaginary watch on his arm. Then he gives me a wink and disappears into thin air. Again. It takes me a moment to get out of my awestruck mood, then just finish up the last of the dishes. I go out to the living room once I’m done to see if Papyrus is up yet. He wasn’t in the living room but the shower sounded like it was running so I sat down and occupied the wait time by playing on my phone. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just wanted to leave a link to the songs talked about or referenced in this chapter to bring some clout to the artists I suppose. I do not own any of the lyrics mentioned in this chapter, they're the property of Melanie Martinez! 
> 
> Ugly, Nicole Dollanganger; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KE9E_KWZZTA&ab_channel=NicoleDollanganger-Topic 
> 
> Million Men, Melanie Martinez; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NcdNZC3rgL4&ab_channel=xyellowpilots


End file.
